Thousands of Malawi’s former ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters in Thyolo, Phalombe and Mulanje on Tuesday petitioned their district commissioners (DC) offices against the arrest of some DPP members.
The petitions requested government to release DPP interim president Peter Mutharika and other party heavyweights such as Henry Mussa, Patricia Kaliati, Kondwani Nakhumwa, Nicholas Dausi and Jean Kalilani.
The group was arrested in the aftermath of a Commission of Inquiry Reportwhich exposes a plot to bar the then Vice-President Joyce Banda from ascending to the presidency in line with constitutional order.
The situation was also ugly in Zomba as DPP supporters marched through the town to the DC’s offices to present a petition over what they described as politically motivated arrests of their party gurus.
The petition partly reads: “We are sincerely calling for Your Excellency to facilitate immediate release of these political gurus without conditions attached for the betterment of mother Malawi and Zomba in particular to avoid serious political repercussions that can set the country on fire,” their grievances.
“The protesters did not alert the police of the planned demonstration as such, the protest was unlawful. Teargas was fired to control the crowd and the situation has calmed down after police and the party leaders’ intervention,” said Nkhwazi.
